The Sarnia Sting officially introduced five new players to the hockey club for the upcoming season.
Adam Ruzicka, Louis Latta, Jordan Ernst, Kelton Hatcher and Philip Helt were officially introduced to fans and media during a press conference at Lambton Mall Friday.
General Manager Nick Sinclair says with a good returning core, he expects the Sting to be very competitive.
"There's a lot of potential in the five guys we added today and they're going to help us a lot this year," says Sinclair. "We want to be competitive and give our team a chance to win every single year, and we feel like we've done that."
Of the five, Helt is the lone player drafted to the NHL. He was a seventh round selection by the St. Louis Blues last spring. Ruzicka and Hatcher are both eligible for the 2017 NHL draft.
Jordan Ersnt comes to the Sting after the spending the season with Bowling Green University, while Louis Latta is the young brother of former Sting captain Nick Latta.
With training camp officially opening on Sunday, Sinclair says there are still some spots to be won on the roster.
"Definitely still some spots open, I've been saying it all along, in all three positions. There's a number of guys who are coming in fighting hard for those spots," he says.
Sinclair admits he'll have some tough choices in the weeks ahead.
"It's not going to be easy making decisions, but at the end of the day that's what you want," says Sinclair.
The Sting will play their annual Black and White game on Tuesday, August 30 at 7pm from the Progressive Auto Sales Arena. Their exhibition schedule opens Friday, September 2 in London. The Knights will travel to Sarnia the next day.
